Chapter 2: Symbolic Node Heart (Part 2)

A massive amount of lightning was drawn into the Ancient Ink Lotus. After observing for a while, Guo Shier said, “I understand now. That’s why the four ancient clans sent experts skilled in altar rituals to suppress their cultivation levels and enter the secret realm—they were there to protect those great sage masters. An attack of this scale might be able to withstand by high-level great sage masters, but mid- to low-level ones… they’d be finished!”
The old man Shuai said, “Even high-level great sage masters can’t withstand it. This isn’t a passage for them to enter.”
The eight great sage masters who followed them in had already been killed by the fine needles—four of them were low-level great sage masters who were smashed against the passage walls like sieves before being torn to pieces by the thin beams of light. The other four were terrified beyond measure.
Guo Shier and the others didn’t realize there was a group of great sage masters following behind them. Moments later, they rushed through the lightning zone.
The old man Shuai said, “Not bad. The lightning here is very pure; it’s already refining the Ancient Ink Lotus for you.”
Eagle Demon worriedly said, “I wonder what other attacks might come. Hopefully, they won’t exceed the Ancient Ink Lotus’s defenses.” He also realized that the two attacks they’d encountered earlier were likely just the beginning.
Guo Shier stared ahead at the passage, fearing another attack he couldn’t withstand. There was no way to retreat at this point; they could only press forward bravely.
The old man Shuai’s expression also grew serious. Such places were the most terrifying because one never knew what dangers or traps might appear.
Another day passed, and Guo Shier said with a bitter smile, “It never ends…”
The old man Shuai’s expression grew increasingly serious as he warned, “Everyone, be careful! I feel something’s wrong!”
As he spoke, the Ancient Ink Lotus rushed into a circular space.
The old man Shuai let out a strange cry, “A symbolic node! Damn it… trouble ahead!”
This circular space was over a thousand meters in diameter, with a circular sphere in the center. It was unclear what material it was made of, but it was perfectly round, like a metal ball processed in his past life. Countless runes covered its surface, with streaks of colored light constantly merging into it. There were numerous passage entrances on the walls of the circular space.
Guo Shier asked in confusion, “What is a symbolic node?”
The old man Shuai was momentarily stunned before confidently saying, “A symbolic node is just a symbolic node!” He blurted it out instinctively, but he lacked any memory of related information.
Guo Shier asked again, “Trouble? What kind of trouble?”
The old man Shuai replied irritably, “How the hell am I supposed to know what kind of trouble it is…”
Eagle Demon couldn’t help but laugh. He said, “Old man Shuai, you were the one who said it, right? Of course we have to ask.”

The handsome old man stared intently at the central sphere, desperately trying to recall. After a long while, he sighed deeply, “Ah, damn it! I really can’t remember anything at all.”
Guo Shier also had no solution. If the handsome old man said he couldn’t remember, then it must be the case. He couldn’t find any relevant information in the inherited memories either. He said, “The problem is… which passage should we take?”
Everyone was stunned. There were hundreds of entrances and exits appearing and disappearing on the circular wall, and they couldn’t even find the passage they came in through, as these openings kept moving.
Eagle Demon sighed and said, “Who cares! Just take it one step at a time. Anyway, we’re already lost, so it doesn’t matter where we end up now.”
Guo Shier said, “That’s true. Hehe, then let’s just explore calmly. We can think about other things once we get out of here.”
More lice don’t make it itchier; more debts don’t cause more worry. Since things had reached this point, getting anxious wouldn’t help, so Guo Shier also calmed down.
The handsome old man continued to stare at the circular sphere, runes glowing in his eyes. He murmured to himself, “ rune node… rune node… rune… node… Tsk tsk, such a familiar feeling… rune, node… point…”
Guo Shier couldn’t help but want to ask, but seeing the old man deep in thought, he kept his mouth shut. It was better not to disturb him at this moment.
After a while, the handsome old man suddenly slapped his palm and said, “Rune! Rune heart! Node rune heart! Haha, I remember now! This central point is a node rune heart!”
Guo Shier asked, “What’s a node rune heart?”
The handsome old man ignored him and continued, “Now we’re in for a busy time. Haha, to think there’s such a treasure!”
Guo Shier pressed further, “Handsome Old Man, what is it? What’s a node rune heart?”
The old man seemed very excited. He said, “It’s hard to explain, but I know that every node rune heart contains a rune—a naturally formed rune that has taken a long time to develop. It’s a rune we can’t depict or describe, nor can we create it ourselves. We can only extract it from a node rune heart!”
Guo Shier asked, “So what’s the use?”
The handsome old man replied, “It’s very useful. The runes we use are all made up of many runes, and these runes form the foundation of our profession. But there are some runes that we professionals can’t master or write in our souls. They form naturally. Ancient Ink Lotus contains such runes, but in very small quantities.”

“The so-called natural runes, once transplanted into the Ancient Ink Lotus, can be mapped into the soul, allowing one to truly master a natural rune. Hehe, its power is incredible! But in this world, such natural runes are extremely rare and hard to collect…”
Guo Shieru pointed at the center and asked, “How many natural runes are there here?”
The handsome old man raised one finger.
Guo Shieru said, “One hundred?”
The handsome old man shook his finger slightly and said, “I guess… just one! At most, two.”
Guo Shieru was stunned and asked in confusion, “One? Damn it! Only one?”
The handsome old man snapped, “Hey! You idiot, just one natural rune is already amazing. You know nothing at all. Don’t make me call you an idiot!”
Guo Shieru muttered, “You’ve called me that before…” Then he smiled broadly and asked, “What’s the use of one natural rune? What kind of rune is it?”
The handsome old man looked at Guo Shieru speechlessly. After a long while, he said, “Do you want me to give you a basic lesson?”
Eagle Demon and Luo Zhan watched smilingly from the side. Sometimes it was fun to see the handsome old man scolding people, especially Guo Shieru. Watching that talkative guy look helpless made them both feel satisfied.
Guo Shieru said with a wry smile, “If you’re willing, giving a lesson isn’t a bad idea.”
The handsome old man slammed his hand against his forehead in anger. “Oh, heavens! This idiot is actually a high-level Grand Sage… Oh… he wants me to give him a basic lesson… Good heavens, this is absolutely absurd!”
Guo Shieru acted like he hadn’t heard and remained indifferent, being rather annoying.
The handsome old man had no choice but to say, “These should be the most basic runes. It depends on what kind of rune characters they are. I’ll try to extract them… Everyone, sit still and don’t move.”
The Ancient Ink Lotus spun and gently flew to the side of the sphere, aligning with it. Before the handsome old man could act, large sections of runes appeared on the sphere. Guo Shieru’s soul suddenly felt a terrifying tremor, and he shouted, “Handsome Old Man! Hide quickly!”
The handsome old man’s expression also changed drastically. He sensed the danger sooner than Guo Shieru. He pressed his palm on the top of the Ancient Ink Lotus, and the entire lotus vanished instantly, reappearing at the edge of the circular space.
The sphere suddenly exploded, with countless virtual runes scattering like fragments after an explosion.
By the time the Ancient Ink Lotus reappeared, those fragments had arrived, but their momentum had weakened significantly, no longer able to break through its protection.

Guo Shier said in surprise, “It exploded? That can’t be right—the center is still intact… Damn it, how is this thing still able to attack?”
The handsome old man remained silent, staring at the center for a long time before saying, “It has natural defense. It’s a pity it’s only the outermost layer of defense; we still can’t figure out its attributes.”
Guo Shier asked, “Should we try again?”
The handsome old man nodded. “That’s right, we need to try again. Hmm, let me try attacking it!”
Eagle Demon said, “It suffered a strong counterattack without any attack. What will happen if we attack? I think we should be careful and use less force.”
The handsome old man said, “I know my limits. Don’t worry. I’ll use Guxi Bi for defense.”
Guxi Bi’s defensive power was extremely strong, a fact Guo Shier fully agreed with. They had spent a great deal of effort capturing Guxi Bi—it was truly formidable.
Countless thick tentacles stretched out from around Gu Mu Lian, swirling in the air. The dense array of tentacles was terrifying, but thankfully, Guo Shier and the others were already used to it.
This time, the handsome old man didn’t get too close. Instead, he stood at the edge of the circular space and launched a virtual talisman attack—a burst of flame. It was a very ordinary flame attack with quite weak power.
Boom!
Sparks flew everywhere. Guo Shier was stunned. He said, “Hm? No reaction?”
The handsome old man reached out and formed a golden spear from a virtual talisman in his hand, then threw it forward.
Everyone’s gaze focused on the flying spear. Over several hundred meters, the golden spear traced an arc toward the center. This attack was still quite simple.
Suddenly, another golden spear rose from the center—thicker and twice as long—heading straight toward it. With a clear clang, the spear thrown by the handsome old man instantly shattered into countless virtual talismans that drifted down. Meanwhile, the golden spear from the center whizzed toward Gu Mu Lian, its target clearly the handsome old man’s head.
The handsome old man exclaimed happily, “It might be a metallic rune!” Before his words faded, the golden spear was already swooping down. A thick tentacle shot out abruptly, followed by another. It took three consecutive tentacle strikes to shatter the golden spear.
Guo Shier couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration, “Wow, amazing!” He understood that this spear made of virtual talismans was countless times harder than one forged from steel.
Eagle Demon suddenly turned around and said, “It actually tracked us here!”

Two high-ranking Grand Saints rushed out of a passage in a sorry state, looking extremely miserable. Out of the eight people who had followed Guo Shier and the others into the passage, only two high-ranking Grand Saints remained, and both of them were severely injured, barely managing to escape.
Guo Shier turned around and felt furious—these guys were persistent, as if they were certain of defeating him. He immediately activated the Ancient Ink Lotus and charged at the two of them.
At this moment, Guo Shier felt an urge to kill.